ernie f

[David M]

Just catching up on your PD, ernie. Everything looks dry and arid which is unsurprising, I suppose, given the hot spell. It's quite strange to see female SWFs looking so tattered in the first half of July!

[ernie f]

So many species are looking a bit tattered. My back garden is a yellow carpet of hay where the grass once was. We haven't had rain here for ages (maybe a month or more).

[ernie f]

Noar Hill - 12th July 2018

More fun with Dark Green Fritillaries today. I went back to see if I could get some backlit underwing pictures. I went early for two reasons, first the sun would be lower, and second I hoped being (slightly) cooler would make them more likely to stop. I was right on both counts to some degree however the two I saw were still pretty active even though they were a bit old by now.

Also today, Peacock, MB&R&G&SW, S&L&M White, S Skip, R Ad, SW Frit and an elderly Painted Lady with a tatty wing-edge.

One of the Small Skippers was strongly marked and its wing colour had a golden sheen to it, not altogether obvious from my pic of it.

Non-butterfly Snapshot of the day

Many of the summer flowers are now out such as Wild Marjoram, Hemp Agrimony, Rosebay Willowherb, Hedge and Ladies Bedstraws and Dark and Great Mulleins.

A mass of Dark Mullein

[Wurzel]

Those DGFs are throwing some interesting shapes Ernie Cracking Painted Lady

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[David M]

That's a veritable forest of mullein, ernie! Well done with the DGFs, although they don't look as though they've got long left.

[philm63]

I particularly like the third DGF, looks like it would not be out of place on a Dr Who episode - Phil

[ernie f]

Thanks for your comments guys.

Phil - A friendly Dr Who "monster" though don't you think? I don't think I have ever seen one actually sitting on the ground like that before now.
David - You're right. I have seen four DGFs here in the last few days and all had some evidence of wear and tear.
Wurzel - I've got to admit, after the DGFs I was actually on my way back to the car and not really paying too much attention when I stumbled across the Painted Lady. The icing on the cake.

Cheers

[Pauline]

Hi Ernie

When did you take that shot of the Mullein? Where on Noar Hill is it as I'd like to check it out for larva?

[ernie f]

Binswood - 13th July 2018

Today started dull, then we had some sun and then it threatened a thunderstorm, so all in all a bit iffy for butterflying but I got out for around an hour at noon. I decided to visit Binswood. I had not been here for a few years because in the interim I had discovered Alice Holt Woodland and its Purple Emperors but today I decided to return to my older haunt.

Binswood is an old hunting woodland which is still surrounded by its now derelict ha-ha in places which was used to keep the deer in. It is overlooked by a hill which at one time had a medieval wooden hunting lodge on top and takes its name of King John’s Hill (or Mount) because of that association. The hill itself bears the banks and scars of a small Iron Age Hillfort and is skirted by a Roman Road now called “Pookles Lane”. (I do not know who or what “Pookles” are, nor why they should chose this lane in which to live).

King John's Mount (above Binswood)

Now in fact Binswood is only 3 miles away from my house and is the first place I ever knowingly spotted a Purple Hairstreak (and got some distant pics of five on one tree). What I had neglected to do that other time was to check out each oak tree along the meadowside. I rectified that today and could not believe it. Every oak I looked at bore at least one Purplestreak and more usually two or three. I counted a total of 41 before the sun failed me and the stormclouds bubbled up. These Purplestreaks were just those in the single row of oaks beside the meadow, where you can stand back and see each tree well. Heaven knows how many there must have been across the entire wood, this being predominently an oak wood!

Not only that, they came down. I saw two on bramble, a few at head height and the rest about mid way down each tree – none were up in the canopy that I could tell and this was 12 noon don’t forget. I assume the dull morning had delayed things a bit.

The only problem I had while taking their pictures was I could never really get close. Even when they came down to brambles there was always a lot of bramble between me and them (I have the scratch marks on my arms to prove it). Thus my pics today are not perfect by any means but my proximity to this site means I can revisit often now I know they are there in such numbers.

Licking aphid honeydew?

Fuzzy pic but deeply coloured

From "above"

I had seen a Purplestreak do a wing-roll last year at Browndown but another one was doing it today at Binswood and this time I got a pair of pictures showing the action. Again not too well focussed but at least it records the performance!

Also there were the usual Browns and Whites, 6 second-brood Common Blues (of which 1 female) and a second-brood male Holly Blue too.

Non-butterfly Snapshot of the day

The winter scene across the lake below the hill.

[ernie f]

Hi, Pauline - Although both Mullein species are blooming at present this is a picture from a previous year. However there is no reason why they should not be there in the same mass now as they were then (they can be found in smaller numbers at many places across the reserve). This particular batch was notable for its size which is why I included it in my post. It was along the tree-line just inside the reserve boundary. You take the second path that runs beside the farm but enter the reserve in the normal way through the gate. Climb the hill on the bridle-path and just before you get to "the scrape" find a way in amongst all the grass and flowers on the opposite side of the path. There are a couple of pits hidden amongst all this and I found the Mullein there. At the time the picture was taken, there was a way through. There may still be, but you might have to beat a way through. Take tick repellent!

[Pauline]

Yeah, but when did you take it Ern? I've not seen mullein like that for years! I tried to find your Sand Martins but the locals told me that path had been closed off for over 10 years!!

[ernie f]

Pauline

The Mullein was taken within the last three years, I don't remember if it was last year or the year before. Also you have been misinformed about the track to the Sand Martin colony. I visited this year and it was most certainly open to the public when I went. In fact the first time I went was more recent than 10 years ago too. So as far as I am aware it has never been closed off in the last 10 years. It may be you was misinformed on purpose. The track to the colony passes a number of big properties, one of which has recently fenced in a small woodland alongside the path. Its just within the realms of possibility there are a few locals who resent the public footpath!

Regards,

[Wurzel]

Particularly like the second Purple Hairstreak shot Ernie, nice and dreamy Have you got Greenstreak on the list of wing rollers?

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[ernie f]

Wurzel - Thanks. "Dreamy" as a substitute for "Out of Focus". I must remember that in future.
Also, yes Greenstreak is on my list of wing-rollers but I have not got a pic of it. However Mike produced a great two-image composite gif a little while ago which does the Greenstreak proud.

Cheers

[ernie f]

Broxhead – Silver Studded Blue – End of 2018 season survey results

The Silver-studded Blue season is pretty much at an end now so I have completed my survey of them this year. This is the first time I have done a complete season count of this species here. It is coincidental that the year I chose to do this just so happened to have fine weather throughout the period. I cannot actually remember any bad weather at all during their flight period at Broxhead. Indeed it was the driest June on record I believe and we had some of our hottest days so far, peaking at 31 degrees in late June and early July. In one way therefore this might be an anomalous year – certainly it is not the norm weather-wise but on the other hand it does provide insight into the ideal population profile here since the conditions were perfect.

I took two gauges of the population, firstly I visited many times throughout the flight period to count the number in and around the area I have termed “The Lek” in a transect of my own devising to maximise the count and in order to obtain trend data at the same time. The second gauge was to ascertain the total population by scouring the whole reserve on a number of days close to their peak.

My method is not the standard transect method because I wanted to try and count as many individuals as possible but I did try to avoid double-counting. My method was to walk fast, not retrace my steps and never count a butterfly that flew from behind me into my field of view. In theory one can never be sure one has not double-counted but this is balanced out by the ones you don’t see. I tested this method in a previous year with White Admirals along the main path at The Straits enclosure at Alice Holt Forest. First I counted them one way using this method, and then I repeated the process on the return walk along the same track in the same hour. My counts in both directions tallied to within 1 individual, 25 one way and 24 the other. A potential error of 1 in 25. Of course to count butterflies accurately you need to take into account their behaviour too. This method seems to work well for those species that do not roam far from where they emerged or have predicatable flight patterns at given times of day. The White Admirals at Alice Holt for example appeared to stay on or close to their nectaring plants in the sun of late morning when I performed my counting test. The Silver-studded Blues at the Broxhead Lek largely do not roam more than 20 metres from where they emerge.

Lek count

I was advised that at other locations further south people had started to spot SSBs in the first week of June, so I started my survey then but I counted none at the Broxhead Lek until the 6th June when there were 5, all male. It was on this day that I realised that male SSBs do spar like many other butterflies but that in previous years I had only seen them at peak and they don’t do it in a pronounced way when the population density increases, they merely “bounce off” each other sporadically but repeatedly. The numbers increased smoothly and rapidly over the coming days with one slight “blip” on the 18th June which is more to do with my early morning timing of the count that day – it is artificially low because I could not count all the roosting individuals that I could not see low down amongst the heather but must have been there at the time.

My max count for the lek and its immediate surroundings was 346 on 23rd June; a smidgen under 2/3 of the total individuals on the reserve at that time – see next section.

This year I decided not only to count the totals but also the male/female ratio, although I did not always do this every day of my survey. Females started to appear in very small numbers only about three days after the males started to appear. I saw my first female on the 8th June and this one was already mating. On the 8th and on the 9th, although the number of males was increasing well, I only saw what I believe to be the same 2 females each day.

I was surprised by the results here. Of course it is more difficult to spot a female and know it is a female on a fast walk but the disparity between my count of males and females each day I did this is so large it cannot be the primary cause. I think what surprised me most was not that there were fewer females than males at all times (even right at the end of my survey the males still out-numbered the females) but more how long the females took to get to their peak numbers. The total figure (and the male-specific figure) peaked around the 23rd June but it was not until around the 4th July that the females peaked, 12 days into the male decline. The surveyed flight period was only 36 days, so this delay between male and female peaks was around 1/3 of the entire flight period.

Reserve count

The second gauge I took was the total count for the reserve at peak and this was 557 in the few days around the 23rd June. I performed a similar survey in 2010 when the total came out as 550, so it appears Broxhead may hold a very stable population.

Given the female peak was 12 days after this “total” means I have undercounted the total numbers for this reserve because I have not counted the peak of females and the peak of males together - only the peak of males and those females that happened to be flying around then. Taking this undercount into consideration the total number of individuals across the whole reserve over the whole time period was closer to 594.

[David M]

Those are very interesting statistics, ernie, and I applaud you for the effort you've put in. There are certainly some very positive counts during the flight period, although as you say this has been just about the perfect year for SSBs, with the warm spell coinciding with their emergence and continuing right the way through it.

[ernie f]

Thanks, David. Having them so close to where I live made it possible. I almost feel privileged to have them as my "Neighbours".

[ernie f]

Binswood - 15th July 2018

Two days ago I came here and found 41 Purplestreaks. Today I took a different path through the woods and glades and counted 52 more. So thats a total of 93 so far for this site. Not only is this a record location count for me, but 52 is also a daily record and an annual record too. The other day took me about 1 hour to get 41 but today was a three hour stroll to get the extra 53. Well I say stroll but really it was punctuated repeatedly with short periods of standing still and craning my neck up to check out each oak tree I passed. Almost all of them had at least one Purplestreak zipping about but one had six flying all at once, another had four and many had three. Mostly they were half way down the tree or even lower to begin with but as the day wore on, they would retreat more to the higher canopy. That said, one of two came down to bramble even around 12 noon but only fleetingly. Only one opened its wings briefly today but flew off before I was able to take my picture, but I got a few closed wing shots.

Also seen here today, Comma, SW Frit, L&GV White, Brimstone, MB&R&G&SW, Red Ad, Holly and Common Blue and one Small Copper that did stop but was fidgety, so no clear pic.

One Gatekeeper posed on a Yarrow for awhile and let me get close to take pics which was nice of it.

Non-butterfly Snapshot of the day

I have seen what I believe is the Dark Bush Cricket here on occasion in previous years (but not today).

[Wurzel]

Good to see even more Purple Hairstreak shots Ernie A couple of years back them coming down was nowhere near the 'given' that we seem to be experiencing now.

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[ernie f]

Wurzel - I've only really been butterflying for a few years so I don't know what the trend is. The first one I ever saw was low down. I had to have them pointed out to me in the canopy. This year though most of the ones I have seen have been part-way down the trees and very few "high silhouettes". Could it be too hot for them up there at the moment? I have noticed some of the ones that do come down try to find shady places under leaves to perch.